You Made Me Change
by Brainless Genius
Summary: All it takes are 3 kisses and some tears to make someone change...Timon/Shenzi all the way through.
1. Chapter 1

It was afternoon, a week after the famed "Battle of Pride Rock." The hyena named Shenzi scoured the desert oasis for food. Banzai had been there earlier, and according to him, there was an entire colony of meerkats just waiting to be eaten that lived here. But Shenzi was just having no luck.

As she walked through the jungle, she remembered everything that had happened a week ago. Besides the fact that she, Banzai, and Ed, along with the other hyenas had eaten their former monarch by the end of the night, there as one thing that she couldn't get out of her head.

Right before the hyenas had...consumed...Scar, she, Banzai, and Ed had been chasing a certain meerkat and warthog. They had put on quite a good show, she had to admit, with an especially impressive freestyle. But it hadn't mattered to the three (At least, it hadn't mattered to her and Banzai; she never could tell what was going on in Ed's mind) because they were about to become their food. But then the meerkat did something that confused and disturbed Shenzi: he _proposed_ to her. And she just couldn't figure out why.

She knew that he was trying to stall for time (and it had worked, the hyenas fell down a hole minutes later) but why did he choose to propose marriage? Out of all the things he could've done, he decided to carry out the plan that would make her the most uncomfortable. But that wasn't even the strangest part. What really confused her was that , ever since that night, she had no desire to eat that particular meerkat, and she just wanted to figure out why. If she could, maybe everything else would make sense-like why she didn't feel romantic towards Banzai anymore. All she knew about that was, it had started the night that Scar died.

Suddenly, something moved in the bushes a few feet to her right. Shenzi go down low and began to stalk whatever it was. As she followed it through the grass, she recognized it as a meerkat-so Banzai hadn't been lying after all. As she got closer and closer to her prey, the meerkat turned around to face her-and Shenzi realized that it was the same one that had proposed marriage to her during the battle.


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry for no author's note last chapter. This chapter is short, but it's got a lot to think about.**

Timon did a double-take, then freaked out at the sight of Shenzi. Only one thought flashed through Shenzi's mind then, and it was that she had to catch him. She still had no intention of eating him, of course. She just wanted to ask him why he had chosen to propose marriage to her instead of using any other diversionary tactic.

But what if she had said yes? She wouldn't, but what if? They couldn't be expected to really get married, could they? What if they had to...kiss?

By then, Shenzi had Timon backing up against a rock. She opened her mouth to talk, but then she found herself doing something completely unexpected. She leaped through the air, covering the only space left between them, and she landed right in front of him.

And then she leaned forward...and kissed him. Full on the lips. For no. Apparent. Reason.

It took Shenzi a couple of seconds to realize what she was doing. But by then, it was too late-Timon had figured out that she wasn't eating him.

He was, however, at a complete loss as to why she was kissing him.

Shenzi broke away from him, looking flustered. Timon looked utterly terrified, possibly even more so than if she had been trying to eat him.

"I have no idea why I did that," Shenzi whispered, looking right at him.

Then, without a second look at him, she turned and ran in the direction of the Elephant Graveyard.

What neither Timon nor Shenzi knew was that Banzai had been watching the entire business from the bushes.

Very quietly, he escaped the oasis and followed Shenzi's pawprints back to their home.

**Next chapter the reason for kissing him is revealed! Please review (I also accept anonymous reviews.)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3...**

Shenzi ran toward the graveyard, not even caring when she almost took down a few more hyenas coming in the other direction.

She had no idea why she did what she just did, but it disturbed her.

But then she slowed down so she could think more clearly, and she realized something.

Right before she had kissed him, she had been _thinking_ about kissing him, and the marriage proposal, right? So maybe her subconscious had made a mistake.

Either that, or it was trying to tell her something.

Banzai watched as Shenzi made a wrong turn on her way to the Elephant Graveyard. He rolled his eyes-she went the long around every time. He had never told her that there was a shortcut, after all.

He stopped following Shenzi's pawprints and turned in the opposite direction.

Five minutes later, he was back at the skull, right on schedule. And Shenzi wasn't there yet.

Shenzi arrived, panting, back at the skull. She walked inside, expecting to find Ed and Banzai not back from hunting yet. Instead, she found Banzai staring at her as soon as she stepped inside.

"What's the matter?" she asked. "Where's Ed?"

"Out hunting," responded Banzai. "Care to explain yourself?"

Chills ran down Shenzi's spine. If Banzai had seen her kissing that meerkat, it made her situation ten times worse.

"I didn't do it on purpose," she muttered, knowing her wouldn't believe her.

"Shenzi, you and I both know that you can't kiss someone by accident. As a matter of fact," he went on, looking upset now, "I always thought you liked _me_."

"I did, Banzai, but something changed the night that we ate Scar."

"The night that meerkat proposed to you, you mean," Banzai corrected darkly.

"Well, yes, but that wasn't why-at least I don't think it was," she added, suddenly unsure.

"Well, forget it, Shenzi. If you can act traitorous today, who knows what you might do tomorrow-or any time in the future. I'm leaving, and I'm not coming back."

Shenzi sighed as she watched him leave. She supposed she deserved it, but at least she still had Ed, right?

Right?

Three hours later, she had seen no sign of either Banzai or Ed. She guessed that Banzai had found Ed and explained the situation, and that Ed had been given no choice but to go with him...

And she was tired. So much had happened today, and she had a lot on her mind.

Like when she was kissing the meerkat, she felt sort of...weird afterward.

Well, obviously.

And he was sort of cute...

Wow. That was the strangest thought she had ever had. But that weird feeling she had after she kissed him was something that she couldn't get off her mind. So she made up her mind that tomorrow, she would just have to kiss him again, and see if she got the feeling again.

But this time, she would ask first, so the meerkat knew what was going to happen before it did.

Now, normally this would never have occurred to her, and if it had, she would have thought she was going insane. But it was almost midnight, and she was so tired she was practically delirious. And she fell asleep thinking about it, so naturally she woke up thinking about it.

When she woke up, it was in her mind, but it seemed crazy. Could she really do it? It made no sense. But, she reasoned, she had promised herself she would do it. So with that in mind, she set out towards the oasis.

**Thanks to those who reviewed, and please review again!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks to everyone who is reading this!**

This time, it was hard to find the meerkat. Shenzi searched the oasis for a long time, but found no sign of him. She was about to give up and go home when she heard a noise behind her.

She turned around and saw the meerkat just standing there, looking at her. He seemed wary once he realized that she had seen him, but he appeared to be interested in what she would do next.

Shenzi decided to speak now before he ran away.

"Erm, I'm really sorry about yesterday. I didn't plan on kissing, you, I promise."

Timon still hadn't moved but was no longer afraid, except for a slight anxiety that she was trying to lull him into a false sense of security.

Shenzi went on talking.

"But something strange happened yesterday when I was kissing you, and it really intrigued me, so I was wondering...could I kiss you again? Just to see if it happens again?"

The last part caught Timon by surprise.

The truth was, he wasn't quite sure that he wanted to kiss a hyena, especially not for the second time in two days. But at the same time, he had felt something funny yesterday too, other than surprise.

And although she acted like she was giving him a choice, he knew there was still the off chance that she could eat him if he refused. He seemed to be in a bit of a dilemma.

Ultimately, he decided that being eaten was a whole lot worse than being kissed.

"Alright, but make it quick," he answered.

He waited to feel embarrassed and awkward again when Shenzi kissed him, but that feeling never came. He knew that she was kissing him, but his emotions were not negative in any way.

And Shenzi, meanwhile, had realized that the strange feeling she had before had returned. The odd thing was, she recognized it now as elation.

And when she stopped kissing him, an even weirder feeling emerged in her: the feeling that she wanted to do it again.

They looked at each other for one moment, and strangely enough, Timon felt the same way that Shenzi did, he just didn't know why, or made the connection to his subconscious like she had.

"Could I kiss you again?" she asked, not because of an experiment this time, but because (although she found it hard to believe) she actually _enjoyed_ it.

Timon just nodded his head in disbelief, because he felt the exact same way she did.

So she kissed him again, and feeling was even stronger this time.

Finally, she pulled her head back, and they looked at each other for a long time.

After a while, Timon asked, "Why did you do that, instead of eating me?"

Shenzi noticed that he didn't say the word _kiss_.

She picked her words carefully. "I don't know why I kissed you," she began, "but I think I know why I didn't eat you."

"The night that you proposed to me, I think I realized that you weren't just another entree. I realized that you had a life, and a soul, and a name."

"Speaking of which, I don't actually know your name. What is it?" she added as an afterthought.

"Timon," Timon said, still shocked at what was happening.

"Timon," Shenzi repeated to herself, like she was trying to remember it.

Then she turned and ran into the trees.

But one thing changed: this time, Timon decided to follow her.

**Did you like it? Did I overuse italics? Answer in a review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I just realized, I forgot to do a disclaimer. So here it is: I don't own the Lion King.**

**This is my favorite chapter!**

Timon ran through the jungle, looking around desperately for Shenzi.

He had no idea why he was doing this. Up until yesterday, he hadn't even thought about the marriage proposal all that much. But now he was thinking about it. A lot.

For starters, he had been nowhere near serious that night. HE had just wanted to find a way to divert the hyena's attention for enough time, so that the trap would work.

In the end, it had worked. But Shenzi's behavior toward him was a side effect, one that he wasn't sure he liked.

He wasn't _sure_.

But here he was, chasing a hyena through the oasis, because she had just kissed him. _Twice_.

When Timon finally found Shenzi, she was lying in the nest where he, Pumbaa, and Simba had slept for so many years. She was lying with her paws over her face, and she was making odd movements that made it look like she was crying.

"Hey," said Timon, trying to move her paws. But Shenzi didn't want to be moved.

Timon tried again, and this time Shenzi let him move her paws away from her face. It became apparent to an astounded Timon that she _was_ crying.

"What's wrong?" he asked with genuine concern.

Shenzi looked at him. "The problem is, I don't know whether I love you or like you or want to eat you, and I can't decide. I can't decide." And then she burst into tears.

For once in his life, Timon didn't know what to say. So he just wiped away her tears and sat with her for a while. Then, for some reason, he found himself climbing onto a patch of fur on her back and curling up there. He couldn't think of anything else that would comfort Shenzi, and it just...felt right.

Shenzi really didn't know what to think. She thought about what she had just said, and realized that she might just be more inclined toward loving him. And when she felt him climb on her back, she couldn't be more surprised. She didn't exactly expect him to feel the same way, but what if he did? Then what?

They both fell asleep like that, Timon curled up on Shenzi's back-which is how Simba and Pumbaa found them in the morning.

**Was that cute or what? Put it in a review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Longer chapter today...enjoy!**

Pumbaa froze in his place, and stared at the scene before him. He remembered Timon's proposal all too well, but he could also recall that Timon had pulled him aside after Simba had assumed the throne, and _very carefully_ explained that he was not serious about proposing to Shenzi, and he did it just to buy them some time.

However, what was happening now seemed to prove otherwise. Unless he was mistaken, Timon was sleeping on Shenzi's back, and it looked voluntary for both of them.

Simba, however, was caught by surprise. He had been fighting Scar when Timon proposed to Shenzi, and hadn't seen it. (And no one would have told him anyway.)

Simba cried out in shock, which awakened Timon. He hopped off of Shenzi and cracked an eye open.

"Hey, can't you tell when people are trying to sleep?"

But for once, he was only partially talking about himself.

"What's going on?" asked Simba, still dazed.

Timon quietly explained the situation to Simba and Pumbaa. He started with the marriage proposal for Simba's benefit, making sure that the two knew that he had not been serious _at the time_.

When he finished the explanation, Simba and Pumbaa were still skeptical.

"So she just kissed you...for no reason?" asked Simba, not sure whether to believe him.

"Well," Timon answered, "if there is a reason, I'll find out when she wakes up."

Earlier that morning, Banzai woke up in the new skull that he now shared with Ed. He was still not over Shenzi, and he knew it. He decided that he would go looking for her today, and if he was lucky, he could get rid of that meerkat. He didn't want anyone to get between him and Shenzi if he could help it.

He figured that she had probably gone to the oasis again, and set off in that direction.

When he got there, he heard Timon's voice talking to Simba and Pumbaa. Banzai had been hoping to talk some sense into Shenzi first, but as he thought about it, the sooner he could get rid of Timon, the better. A plan started to form in his mind: He would eat the meerkat quickly, and go find Shenzi. If there wasn't anyone else for Shenzi to kiss, she would have to go back to him.

Banzai hid as Simba and Pumbaa left. Then he emerged from the bushes, right in front of Timon. He failed to see Shenzi sleeping on the other side of a tree on his left.

Timon saw Banzai, and froze in terror. He had a bad feeling that he knew why Banzai was here, and his fears were realized when Banzai began to talk.

"So, I saw you kissing Shenzi the other day..."

Timon resisted the urge to roll his eyes, despite the situation. Obviously, it was Shenzi who had initiated the kiss.

"...and I just wanted to tell you to back off. I have known Shenzi for a lot longer than you have, and at least I'm in the same _species_ as she is."

Meanwhile, the sound of Banzai's voice was bringing Shenzi into consciousness. She listened in horror as she started to recognize his voice. Then she heard him growling at Timon, and knew that she had to act now, or else Timon would become a meal for Banzai.

"Leave him ALONE!"

Shenzi came around the corner of the tree and knocked into Banzai just as he was about to pounce on Timon. Banzai was surprised, and could only watch as Shenzi moved to block him from getting at Timon.

"I told you something changed, Banzai; now leave before I have to force you to."

Banzai looked at her, unable to believe it. "You're really picking him...over _me_?"

Shenzi sighed. "It's complicated...but yes."

Banzai was torn between trying to make her change her mind and running away, but one look at Shenzi's face told him the right choice.

He turned around and ran straight toward the Elephant Graveyard.

When he was gone, Timon turned toward Shenzi.

"So, have you made your decision?" he asked.

"Yes," Shenzi replied. "I love you."

"Then I guess...I love you too," Timon answered, not knowing what else to say.

**Reviews are greatly appreciated! (And on the same note, thanks to those who already reviewed!)**


	7. Chapter 7

**First of all, I apologize for taking forever to update. A combination of traveling and writer's block kept me from this for a while. I know it isn't much, but this is all I could think of for now. Enjoy!**

Banzai lay in the new skull, in utter disbelief of what had just happened. Here he hadalways thought that Shenzi had feelings for him, and now she was leaving him-for someone she had been trying to eat less than two weeks ago, of all things! And even worse, nothing had gone according to plan. True, he hadn't exactly expected Shenzi to come running back to him after what was supposed to happen, but he wasn't expecting full-out rejection, either.

And ever since he made the decision to leave, he and Ed were having a hard time on their own. They had never known life without Shenzi, and today's incident had only made things worse. It was time for Banzai to face facts: Shenzi wasn't coming back to him, ever.

But then something occurred to him: If Shenzi didn't love him, why on earth should he feel inclined to love her? After all, it was pretty pointless.

But all he could think was: he had spent years hitting on Shenzi and waiting for her to like him back. And now she was throwing it all away for someone _a couple of levels down in the food chain_? That was just adding insult to injury.

Now in light of today's events, Banzai had to make a decision. He could either continue chasing down Shenzi, or he could funnel all of his negative emotions into one goal: to get revenge.

This, of course, would not come easy. First of all, Shenzi was pretty tough when she wanted to be. That point, he felt, had been proved enough already today.

Second, it felt weird for him to be doing this, to be trying to purposely hurt Shenzi when he had liked her almost all of their lives.

But then, he realized, there was still a way to do it, nice and easy. He didn't even have to sway from his original plan all that much.

All he had to do was kill the meerkat. Not eat him, because then it wouldn't hurt Shenzi as much. She had to see him dead, and then Banzai could clean up.

Of course, he highly doubted that after the events of today, the meerkat would be alone at all. Shenzi would probably be with him at all times.

But then again, she couldn't possibly be with him every minute of the day. All he had to do was wait...

**Well, that was actually a hard chapter to write. You can tell I don't like Banzai, right? **

**Please review whether you loved it, hated it, or were somewhere in the middle. It would be greatly appreciated!**


End file.
